Crate & Barrel is packing its last loads out of San Francisco’s Union Square.
The Illinois-based furniture and home decor store will close its CB2 sister brand shop this month at 34 Ellis Street, the San Francisco Business Times reported.
The four-story building contains 21,600 square feet and is owned by an affiliate of Roberta Hayes of Hayes Hosiery.
The closure follows Crate & Barrel’s exit last March from its 53,000-square-foot store at 55 Stockton Street nearby. The shop was replaced by Australia-based Coco Republic.
Departures of major retail chains from San Francisco’s luxury shopping district have drawn attention from City Hall.
Last month, The Container Store signaled it will move out of its 30,000-square-foot store at 26 Fourth Street, following the path of Uniqlo, DSW, Marshalls, Gap, H&M and Abercrombie & Fitch.
The slump in business around Union Square led Mayor London Breed and local businesses to promote zoning reform to revitalize the upscale shopping district. The plan calls for lifting zoning restrictions to draw more tenants, while adding housing and offices on upper floors.
The initial effort would focus on a corridor connecting Union Square plaza to Gap’s former flagship at the cable car turnaround, which has been empty since 2020.
On a positive note, San Francisco-based Gap signed a 10-year lease to fill three floors at 152 Gary Street with a Banana Republic store, adding to its Athleta and Old Navy brands in Union Square. Gap shuttered its flagship store at 890 Market Street in 2020.
Crate & Barrel Holdings, owned by the Germany-based Otto Group, was founded in 1962 and inspired by simple-but-stylish furniture that founders Gordon and Carole Segal saw on their European honeymoon. The CB2 brand, founded in 2000, is geared toward young adults.
The nearest Crate & Barrel to San Francisco is in Corte Madera, with stores in Berkeley, Walnut Creek, Palo Alto and San Jose. There are CB2 stores in Berkeley and San Jose.
— Dana Bartholomew
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Commercial
San Francisco
The Container Store to vacate SF’s Union Square
Commercial
San Francisco
The Container Store to vacate SF’s Union Square